I bought a large thick book of Hans Christian Andersen at a secondhand shop, thinking it would be lovely to read to my twin daughters at night. After reading a few, I was stunned. There are so many with such dark, harsh morales. Rather gruesome scary stuff for kids. It gave me a new meaning for fairy tales. I read the Red Shoes tale too and that ending!!
Maybe it would be a good experience for your kids? Personally I don't believe that it helps to protect your kids...better to expose them fully to the harshness of the world at a young age.
@coloured-content, I'm with you. Kids can handle more than we think. Fairy tales are the staff of life. When we homogenize them, we take out the learning opportunities.